The ever increasing number of portable handheld devices, and other electronic devices, have placed demands on manufacturers to create new techniques and mechanisms by which to enter data and information into a device. For example, the common PDA device in everyday usage is typically used for storing addresses and contact information, in addition to schedules and other types of data storage. Such a device normally requires the user to enter data within a small input space. Typically these input mechanisms used for data entry are unwieldy or difficult to learn. Even when proficient, the user is often hampered by this small space within which data is entered. As a result many users find the data input speed is quite low, and typing accuracy is diminished compared to full size keyboards that are traditionally used with conventional computer systems. This barrier tends to discourage users from entering large amounts of data into the device, and as such most PDA devices are largely used merely to passively read or to access data already stored either in the device or elsewhere, including increasingly on the Web. While the typical PDA is very useful for such purposes, it's alternate purpose as a data-input device has been much less favored.
As each new electronic, portable, or PDA type device is created, manufacturers have attempted to create new mechanisms for data entry, including such mechanisms as small touch screen devices, character recognition including handwriting recognition, small keyboard style mechanisms, chorded keyboards, and wheel type or jog devices for selecting particular keys. Another common alternatives is to provide mechanical add-ons, such as plug-in keyboards that can be used with the device to allow the user to enter occasional data. The field of such devices and applications has grown in recent years to include PDA devices, gaming machines, cell phones, Web appliances such as small computers with a Web-enabled screen, handheld devices, pagers, email devices, digital remote controls with display screens, corporate handheld devices such as used by delivery drivers and law enforcement professionals, medical devices, information kiosks which are often found in airports and hotels, and Automatic Teller Machines (ATM's). Some or all of these devices currently make use of technologies such as add-on keyboards and/or touch screen devices, to allow a user to enter data in a reasonably easy manner, but with widely varying degrees of success.
Some manufacturers have attempted to address the data input issue by using handwriting recognition as it is applied to a touch sensitive display. For example, the Palm Graffiti language, and the Handspring means of data entry, uses a stylus that is applied to a touch screen device to enter data in a handwritten manner. The disadvantage of such systems is that the shorthand type of data entry must be learned before using the device, and requires sufficiently accurate handwriting on the part of the user. The learning curve can be somewhat substantial at times, in that for example the Graffiti letters do not typically look like the letters they are supposed to represent. In addition, the Graffiti language is often written in a particular part of the screen one letter at a time, making it uncomfortable for a user to learn, and often resulting in a reduction in potential data entry speed. Systems such as Graffiti often require recalibration of the device, particularly if the device is shared by two or more users who have different handwriting characteristics.
Some manufacturers have expanded on the Graffiti language to create methods of data entry by character recognition that approximates the normal handwritten language more closely. One such example of this system is the “Jot” system by Communication in Intelligence Corporation. Jot allows the user to write characters directly on a Palm screen, with uppercase letters in one section of the screen, and lowercase letters in another section. Numbers can be written on another section. However, the letters do not appear exactly as the alphabet and the issues of adequate penmanship and multiple users is the same with the Jot system as with the normal Graffiti system. Other manufacturers such as Electric Pocket, Informal Software, and Paragon Software have also developed systems for data entry that use one or more of the Graffiti style of data input and suffer from the same problems.
An alternate form of data entry in such handheld and other electronic devices is voice input. Some systems provide a speech input platform that allows a user to enter data using just the user's voice. However, the accuracy may vary widely not only between users but also for one user on certain days if the user's voice is affected. In addition, many users are unfamiliar with the mode of entering data by voice, and prefer to be able to enter data by text or on the screen in some manner.
Blackberry style devices, and other small portable devices such as Web-enabled cell phones, and PDA style cell phones, sometimes provide a keypad for use in data entry. The keypad is often a QWERTY style keypad with a full character set. However, the buttons are typically very small, and difficult to use, which reduces the overall speed in which a user can type. Some keypads do not provide a full QWERTY style keypad but instead assign two or more characters to each button. However, this problem usually requires a user to take many additional steps to input a particular key, and is often cumbersome to use. Other manufacturers use on-screen QWERTY style keyboards to allow a user to select one or more keys from a full on-screen displayed keyboard. However, these systems are typically not very fast, and also suffer from the fact that they use too much of the available real estate of the device.
Other keyboard mechanisms and modifications which have been used in the past to allow for data entry on small handheld devices include the chorded keywords often found in DVORAK keyboards and predictive text inputs for telephone-style keypads such as those supplied by Tegic or Eatoni Ergonomics, which attempt to predict a user's data input by the phrase that appears before the present input.
When a user inputs data through a small QWERTY keyboard with small keys or tiny buttons, speed and accuracy are reduced because the keyboards are typically awkward and not ergonomic. QWERTY keyboards will always pose the problem of needing to hunt and peck, and therefore more space is required which in turn increases the size of the device or requires yet another device. Portable folding QWERTY keyboards attachable to handhelds and sized at full or near full scale are essentially extra luggage, increasing weight and space needs for mobile users.
Cell phone input of information via small alphanumeric keys is cumbersome, slow and inaccurate, and multitapping on telephone keypads is awkward. Reduced keyboard disambiguating programs are usually inefficient, prone to error and often require the user to choose from a long list of potential words to find a word that is derived from any certain combination of keystrokes. This requires pressing a sequence of keys and then filtering the word out from a list. Additionally, the device may need to use a large amount of storage capacity in order to process this information. Also, disambiguating programs may be less useful when more than one language is used. Another problem is the cost and placement of the button-type alphanumeric keyboard on a device such as a cell phone, so that it does not take away space from the small display screens found on the device. The newer Internet enabled PDA-cell phone hybrids need an improved input method and system to best realize their potential.
Pen-based methods of input have advantages over smaller keyboards, but are also cumbersome and require learning handwritten symbols. The computer is required to translate the handwritten symbols of a new alphabet into known associated characters. Users must convert into a new alphabet and the devices are prone to mismatching symbols. Users with poor handwriting are disadvantaged with Graffiti type input. In addition, many users do not like the ergonomic feel of writing on glass.
Auditory input methods are improving, but there are many reasons why a user will want to have the ability to input without speaking. Many users find it easier to convey their ideas by writing or typing rather than through dictating into a device. Also, there are many settings in which the user will not want to be overheard.
Full on-screen keyboards take up a good deal of display space and also require the user to hunt and peck. Even full desktop keyboards not only take up a good deal of room, but require all but reasonably expert typists to “hunt and peck” over a large keyboard. This is similar for wireless keyboards.
All of the conventional interfaces and input means and systems have substantial drawbacks for easy, rapid and accurate input. Users find the above input methods to be either not truly portable, or slow and frustrating to use.